Jay Jones has to be rejected! If it's too late to remove him, then explain he will be removed and replaced after you are elected. Be upfront about this intolerance. Do not wait, Abigail. Take the risk.
This is spot on. And of course extremely troubling. So, let's look at the next natural step. What do we do? As everyone says, VOTE. Historically, various sectors - from nihilistic progressives to young college students and others - have failed to vote to prevent this from happening. Now, we're in a much worse situation re: voting and elections. Why? Because Trumpland has learned how to rig elections without detection or challenge from Democrats, and they're moving forward with due speed on state-level pro-Trump gerrymandering initiatives (which, right now, SCOTUS is helping him achieve), plus rightwing billionaires are buying voting systems (see Dominion's purchase this month by rightwing Liberty Vote) and more. Additionally, we must keep in mind Trump has the power to invoke the Insurrection Act and declare martial law, and we can't ignore that he would do this in order to maintain full control of WH + Congress. It seems he's setting up to do this with this Antifa nonsense. IOW, I don't know if there's going to be an election, free/fair or one at all, in 2026...or beyond.
As Trump continues to bomb boats supposedly carrying drug smugglers from Venezuela AND now is sending the CIA in presumably to topple the Venezuela n government, why don't any of the reporters or media ask the following question: "Mr. President, you are repeatedly attacking Venezuela and have sunk 5 boats and their crews for drug smuggling, BUT EVERYONE KNOWS THAT THE MAJORITY OF FENTANYL COMES FROM MEXICO--NOT VENEZUELA!!!!!
Have been scrolling past 80% of the Bulwark doom videos/ articles recently. Sorry I resubscribed. Better to watch Lemon bravely covering street protests, or the previous Obama staff on Pod Save America try to visualize a path out; additionally, they are both sincerely pro Democracy journalists. Never Trumpers lack optimism and are drowning in a tub of sour grape juice. They hate the Dems, make fun of progressives, loathe MAGA, and seem addicted to fear mongering. Anybody can engage in doom posting.
I am pretty pessimistic about where we are now, but I guess I can only hope the regime has pushed too far, too fast and people are starting to wake up, but I don't know. A national strike needs to be the organized.
“This behavior is abominable, but it’s also unsurprising.”
Thank you for the context, but why does The Bulwark keep saying this is unsurprising? At worst that’s an excuse for the behavior. At best it’s downplaying the behavior.
It has gotten worse because of trump, but it has not always been the GOP that controlled the South and stood for white supremacy. The Dixiecrats were a faction in the Democratic Party, not the GOP. Before the 1965 VRA, it was the exact opposite. Democrats were the part of the South that had long stood for slavery and segregation. Black people voted overwhelmingly for Republicans (if they could vote) until Nixon and Reagan’s southern strategy flipped and reorganized what the two parties advocated for.
I guess because they’ve been pretty accurately predicting how Trump 2.0 without guardrails would play out. Another relatively benign explanation is that they don’t want us to waste our time on pearl-clutching. It’s time for action. What that action is, is TBD. They can make suggestions, but it’s really up to either a bottom-up grassroots movement, or a top-down politician-driven movement. My bet is on the former.
I’m also asking the question because Tim Miller actually said that he had seen this all before as in pre-trump. And that seems to be why he’s nonplussed. Racism and nazism among Republicans? Meh, he says. He seems to think it’s not a big deal at the same time he’s made a special YouTube video about it. It’s a bit confusing.
I guess the point was that, yes, the GOP has long attracted a disproportionate share of racists and authoritarians. (We all knew that, especially when the Dixiecrats signed up.) He signed on for limited government, free markets, etc, I think, and he did work for Jeb Bush, who isn’t perfect but is certainly not a racist or authoritarian. But it looks like Tim gave up on trying to work with the party and therefore left. The racism and authoritarianism was always there but has gotten worse.
Thanks for writing Joanne. I only got there once, but I was really impressed. I think they unfortunately just didn't have enough generous donors like you. Maybe someone will decide to give such a museum in honor of our journalists another try someday soon. They have certainly earned that respect from all of us.
At least one liberal state should adopt a multiparty proportional system like mixed-member proportional. While this would loosen liberal partisan control of that state, it would show to the country what it looks like when the parties fragment and realign.
In particular, the right would split into a MAGA faction and a moderate faction. Once the moderates are free to “other” the nut jobs, they will.
True. On the other hand, he can count on only a relatively tiny number of personnel to do his bidding domestically. The military has other shit to do to protect the US internationally. And for those personnel available, do they really want to be in the position of British troops in the colonies? I’d guess some do, but few enough that they’d be vastly outnumbered. Then, the real decision-making starts.
Until December 31, 2019, residents and visitors to Washington, D.C,. could visit the Newseum, a museum honoring the work of our journalists and its importance in helping to protect the freedoms guaranteed in our Bill of Rights. It was located at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue, just down the street from the White House. I remember walking by it during a terrific protest march against gun violence organized by the students at Parkland High School .
Even if they didn't go in, anyone walking by the building could read the full text of the First Amendment to our constitution engraved on the wall outside.
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances".
That's what that engraved tablet said in large letters. Unfortunately, the Newseum closed in 2019. The building now belongs to Johns Hopkins University, and I wondered if Hopkins had kept the First Amendment on the wall outside, so I checked. Alas, it is no longer there. However, I discovered that people who would like to honor the First Amendment can now visit it at the Constitution Center in Philadelphia. Ben Franklin would be proud.
If some of Bill Kristol's old friends are puzzled that he will be out there with the rest of us on Saturday for the No Kings protest, perhaps they might schedule a visit to the Constitution Center. It would remind them of what they learned long ago in school about our Bill of Rights and why it matters, now more than ever. It's OK, Bill. Some of your old friends still may not get it, but the rest of us will be out there exercising our First Amendment rights. We will welcome you with open arms.
The brazenly targeted, obnoxious and punitive actions are escalating. Will there be a tipping point when the non-MAGA opposition will recognize this country is no longer offering them anything but discriminatory abuse?
"And several new friends have commented on the irony that I was a supporter of policies they protested in earlier times."
When I lived in Hong Kong pre-umbrella revolution, I saw that the people protesting against the communist government in favour of democracy and free market capitalism were the same type of people who would have been protesting in favour of a more socialist oriented government against more capitalist governments back home.
There's a thread that binds movements across the world that seek to disperse power and enforce rights. It's not the ideologies that these movements protest for, so much as it is what they mobilize against that is important. None of us want authoritarianism or totalitarianism, regardless of the aegis under which we protest.
Jay Jones has to be rejected! If it's too late to remove him, then explain he will be removed and replaced after you are elected. Be upfront about this intolerance. Do not wait, Abigail. Take the risk.
This is spot on. And of course extremely troubling. So, let's look at the next natural step. What do we do? As everyone says, VOTE. Historically, various sectors - from nihilistic progressives to young college students and others - have failed to vote to prevent this from happening. Now, we're in a much worse situation re: voting and elections. Why? Because Trumpland has learned how to rig elections without detection or challenge from Democrats, and they're moving forward with due speed on state-level pro-Trump gerrymandering initiatives (which, right now, SCOTUS is helping him achieve), plus rightwing billionaires are buying voting systems (see Dominion's purchase this month by rightwing Liberty Vote) and more. Additionally, we must keep in mind Trump has the power to invoke the Insurrection Act and declare martial law, and we can't ignore that he would do this in order to maintain full control of WH + Congress. It seems he's setting up to do this with this Antifa nonsense. IOW, I don't know if there's going to be an election, free/fair or one at all, in 2026...or beyond.
As Trump continues to bomb boats supposedly carrying drug smugglers from Venezuela AND now is sending the CIA in presumably to topple the Venezuela n government, why don't any of the reporters or media ask the following question: "Mr. President, you are repeatedly attacking Venezuela and have sunk 5 boats and their crews for drug smuggling, BUT EVERYONE KNOWS THAT THE MAJORITY OF FENTANYL COMES FROM MEXICO--NOT VENEZUELA!!!!!
Have been scrolling past 80% of the Bulwark doom videos/ articles recently. Sorry I resubscribed. Better to watch Lemon bravely covering street protests, or the previous Obama staff on Pod Save America try to visualize a path out; additionally, they are both sincerely pro Democracy journalists. Never Trumpers lack optimism and are drowning in a tub of sour grape juice. They hate the Dems, make fun of progressives, loathe MAGA, and seem addicted to fear mongering. Anybody can engage in doom posting.
Res ipsa Ioquitor. The facts speak for themselves m.
I am pretty pessimistic about where we are now, but I guess I can only hope the regime has pushed too far, too fast and people are starting to wake up, but I don't know. A national strike needs to be the organized.
“This behavior is abominable, but it’s also unsurprising.”
Thank you for the context, but why does The Bulwark keep saying this is unsurprising? At worst that’s an excuse for the behavior. At best it’s downplaying the behavior.
It has gotten worse because of trump, but it has not always been the GOP that controlled the South and stood for white supremacy. The Dixiecrats were a faction in the Democratic Party, not the GOP. Before the 1965 VRA, it was the exact opposite. Democrats were the part of the South that had long stood for slavery and segregation. Black people voted overwhelmingly for Republicans (if they could vote) until Nixon and Reagan’s southern strategy flipped and reorganized what the two parties advocated for.
I guess because they’ve been pretty accurately predicting how Trump 2.0 without guardrails would play out. Another relatively benign explanation is that they don’t want us to waste our time on pearl-clutching. It’s time for action. What that action is, is TBD. They can make suggestions, but it’s really up to either a bottom-up grassroots movement, or a top-down politician-driven movement. My bet is on the former.
I’m also asking the question because Tim Miller actually said that he had seen this all before as in pre-trump. And that seems to be why he’s nonplussed. Racism and nazism among Republicans? Meh, he says. He seems to think it’s not a big deal at the same time he’s made a special YouTube video about it. It’s a bit confusing.
I guess the point was that, yes, the GOP has long attracted a disproportionate share of racists and authoritarians. (We all knew that, especially when the Dixiecrats signed up.) He signed on for limited government, free markets, etc, I think, and he did work for Jeb Bush, who isn’t perfect but is certainly not a racist or authoritarian. But it looks like Tim gave up on trying to work with the party and therefore left. The racism and authoritarianism was always there but has gotten worse.
Thanks for writing Joanne. I only got there once, but I was really impressed. I think they unfortunately just didn't have enough generous donors like you. Maybe someone will decide to give such a museum in honor of our journalists another try someday soon. They have certainly earned that respect from all of us.
Wait. Is DJT saying that the "Mass Deportation Now" posters were "made in the basement out of love?" Who knew?
A Modest Proposal:
At least one liberal state should adopt a multiparty proportional system like mixed-member proportional. While this would loosen liberal partisan control of that state, it would show to the country what it looks like when the parties fragment and realign.
In particular, the right would split into a MAGA faction and a moderate faction. Once the moderates are free to “other” the nut jobs, they will.
Despite Trump's limited executive function, he's been very good at following the recipe for provoking martial law.
https://bsky.app/profile/photoonist.bsky.social/post/3m3aohqkh3k2b
True. On the other hand, he can count on only a relatively tiny number of personnel to do his bidding domestically. The military has other shit to do to protect the US internationally. And for those personnel available, do they really want to be in the position of British troops in the colonies? I’d guess some do, but few enough that they’d be vastly outnumbered. Then, the real decision-making starts.
Until December 31, 2019, residents and visitors to Washington, D.C,. could visit the Newseum, a museum honoring the work of our journalists and its importance in helping to protect the freedoms guaranteed in our Bill of Rights. It was located at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue, just down the street from the White House. I remember walking by it during a terrific protest march against gun violence organized by the students at Parkland High School .
Even if they didn't go in, anyone walking by the building could read the full text of the First Amendment to our constitution engraved on the wall outside.
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances".
That's what that engraved tablet said in large letters. Unfortunately, the Newseum closed in 2019. The building now belongs to Johns Hopkins University, and I wondered if Hopkins had kept the First Amendment on the wall outside, so I checked. Alas, it is no longer there. However, I discovered that people who would like to honor the First Amendment can now visit it at the Constitution Center in Philadelphia. Ben Franklin would be proud.
If some of Bill Kristol's old friends are puzzled that he will be out there with the rest of us on Saturday for the No Kings protest, perhaps they might schedule a visit to the Constitution Center. It would remind them of what they learned long ago in school about our Bill of Rights and why it matters, now more than ever. It's OK, Bill. Some of your old friends still may not get it, but the rest of us will be out there exercising our First Amendment rights. We will welcome you with open arms.
I loved that museum. After seeing one time, I donated to them for several years. It was vey sad that it closed.
The brazenly targeted, obnoxious and punitive actions are escalating. Will there be a tipping point when the non-MAGA opposition will recognize this country is no longer offering them anything but discriminatory abuse?
1st, blue states need to stop remitting funds to the feds to give to the red states.
2nd, condemn Trump Tower in NYC, Chicago, and elsewhere, and tear them down.
"It’s MAGA gone metastatic" - nailed it
"And several new friends have commented on the irony that I was a supporter of policies they protested in earlier times."
When I lived in Hong Kong pre-umbrella revolution, I saw that the people protesting against the communist government in favour of democracy and free market capitalism were the same type of people who would have been protesting in favour of a more socialist oriented government against more capitalist governments back home.
There's a thread that binds movements across the world that seek to disperse power and enforce rights. It's not the ideologies that these movements protest for, so much as it is what they mobilize against that is important. None of us want authoritarianism or totalitarianism, regardless of the aegis under which we protest.